


What Immortal Hand?

by Turn_of_the_Sonic_Screw



Series: October Ficlet Challenge [52]
Category: Carmilla (Web Series), Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Crossover, F/F, First Kiss, Were-Creatures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-26
Updated: 2017-10-26
Packaged: 2019-01-23 23:25:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12518988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Turn_of_the_Sonic_Screw/pseuds/Turn_of_the_Sonic_Screw
Summary: Samantha Traynor volunteers for a risky experimental project to help fight the Reapers. Ashley Williams is present as a disinterested observer. Purely disinterested.Pairing: Samantha Traynor/Ashley Williams. Prompt: Were-creatures





	What Immortal Hand?

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt and beta by the wonderful imaginary_golux.

Ashley longed for the familiar wood of her rosary, the oaken beads dark with years of worrying. Unfortunately, she was present in her capacity as a Spectre, observing the procedure for the Council. That meant her Spectre dress uniform, which was catastrophically lacking in pockets.

She forced herself calm by dint of will, vowing to remain strong for Samantha; if she was this nervous, her friend must be petrified. Especially since she was the one undergoing the experiment.

"Don't worry." The scientist in charge of the project interrupted her thoughts. "Your girlfriend will be fine." Her nameplate read Karnstein.

"I-- We're not--" Ashley crimsoned.

"Trust me, cutie: my gaydar is the most perfectly calibrated device in this lab."

"How did you get named project lead again? I'm sure it wasn't charm."

"I'm the prototype. And trust me, they broke the mold when they got done with me." She smirked proudly. "Now go hold her sweaty hands, meathead."

Glad of the excuse to leave, Ashley made her way across the lab to where Samantha Traynor waited in a plain black singlet. She did, in fact, scoop up both of Sam’s hands in her own. “Hey, are you sure you still want to do this?”

“Hell, no.” Ashley shifted her hands to Sam’s bare shoulders as she started to shiver. “But I have to do it. Because if the Crucible doesn’t work, then we’ll need every fighter we can lay our hands on. And if that day comes, I’m going to be a lot more use like this than as some noodle-wristed, asthmatic technician from a backwater colony. And someone has to go first. Otherwise we’ll never get the civilian volunteers we’ll need.”

“Yeah, but…” Her thumb traced circles on Sam’s clean, brown skin. “You’re _my_ noodle-wristed, asthmatic technician from nowhere.”

“Kiss her already!” Karnstein yelled from across the room. So she did.

“Finally,” Sam purred. “Well, if this all goes tits up, at least I can die happy.” Ashley kissed her again, more savagely this time. Sam blinked. “Okay, now I’m a little light-headed. Strap me in.”

Another lab coat led Samantha over to the hermetic chamber and sealed her in. “This is where I should be making some blah-blah speech about how this is a great day for science, then spout off a bunch of technobabble that you’ll pretend to follow. But frankly, I don’t have time for that bullshit. So how about you just clap, and then bob your head, and make believe like I did my part, too,” Karnstein announced. “Flip the fucking switches.”

“What a bitch,” Ashley muttered, and started fiddling relentlessly with the hem of her jacket. All she could do was wait and pray, anyway. 

“Aaand...done!” Karnstein proclaimed. Ashley pushed through the crowd as Sam staggered out, completely unchanged and dry-heaving violently. “Feel the beast within you,” she intoned. “Let it out. It’ll hurt the first time, and then every month. But then…” She grinned as she trailed off. “You might want to give her some space, girl scout.”

Ashley drew back instinctively as Sam’s muscles rippled beneath her skin, then as fur sprouted, rich orange and black stripes. “Holy shit… Talk about fearful symmetry: Sam, you’re ripped.” 

She was, in fact, now a seven foot tall were-tigress. “Oh no,” she cried. “The singlet was supposed to stretch...oh, you mean like this?” She flexed one arm. Ashley’s jaw dropped. 

“Take me now,” Ashley whimpered. Traynor roared with laughter, then collapsed into a tiny heap of human comm specialist.

“Easy, easy,” Karnstein urged. “We’ll keep her under observation for a day or so. The first time’s always worst.” She patted Sam’s unconscious head. “You did good, kiddo.”

“I’ll, uh, need to check in on her regularly. As part of the continuing monitoring process,” Ashley bluffed. Karnstein snorted, but nodded her assent. Ashley looked back at Sam. Well, this was going to be interesting.


End file.
